December 9, 2009
Behind the Scenes at the Princeton Symphony
Melanie Clarke, Executive Director
Rossen Milanov, Music Director
Princeton Symphony Orchestra
Minutes of the 12th Meeting of the 68th Year
President George Hansen called to order the 12th meeting of the 68th year at 10:15 AM at Friend Center. Don Edwards led the invocation. Joe Giordmaine read the minutes of the previous meeting. Four guests were welcomed: Charles Jaffin introduced his wife, Rosanna; Lanny Jones introduced Kathleen Reilly; Jack Wallace introduced his wife, Happy; and Tom Fulmer introduced his wife, Peggy. The last meeting of the fall session was announced: two musicians, John Burkhalter and Donavan Klotzbeacher, will present “Mr. Handel and Herr Telemann – Two Old Friends.”
The topic for the morning was “Behind the Scenes at the Princeton Symphony,” which was presented as a kind of sonata a dué in three movements by Melanie Clarke, the Symphony’s Executive Director, and Rossen Milanov, its new Music Director. In the overture, Henry King, introduced the players, noting that he and Ms. Clarke are summer neighbors in Vermont. She joined the Symphony as a second violin in 1990 and became Director of Education in 1995 and Executive Director in 2006. She holds degrees from Wellesley and Harvard and has studied violin at Oberlin and Yale. She led the two-year search that resulted in the appointment of Rossen Milanov as Music Director in June of this year. Maestro Milanov is Artistic Director of The Philadelphia Orchestra at the Mann Center and the Music Director of the New Symphony Orchestra in his native Bulgaria. He has studied at Juilliard and Curtis and was named Bulgaria’s Musician of the Year in 2005.
Ms. Clarke began the first movement by playing an excerpt from Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings, one of three works for string orchestra that will make up the Symphony’s Classical Series Concert in March. The concert illustrates two characteristics of contemporary programming: economic challenges and partnerships with other organizations. The reduced size of the string orchestra helps with budget cuts, and another work on the program by John Tavener, which was inspired by Byzantine art, is linked to an exhibit at the Princeton Art Museum.
The Princeton Symphony is one of 350 professional orchestras in the United States, whose budgets range from $250,000 to $200 million. Princeton Symphony is a million dollar organization, but it shares the same issues as its larger counterparts. Its concert series is central to its mission but is “only the tip of the iceberg.” A holiday Pops concert, a Sunday Afternoon Chamber Series, and an extensive education program are major elements of their operations. Subscriptions for the Classical Series fill three-quarters of the seats at Richardson Auditorium, but individual donors are the primary source of support, followed by concert income, corporate and foundation grants, the NJ State Council on the Arts, and, in good years, endowment. Four staff and twenty trustees manage the organization. Fifty to sixty musicians play five to seven concerts annually on a per service basis. Most are graduates of Juilliard and Curtis.
In managing the Princeton Symphony, Ms. Clarke tries to keep focused on coherent programming, performance quality, and customer service while dealing with budget, planning, marketing, fund raising, contracting, communications, and volunteer coordination. They are justly proud that they have received a Citation of Excellence and been designated as a Major Arts Organization by the NJ State Council on the Arts.
In the second movement, Maestro Milanov noted this was his first public appearance in Princeton. He is much impressed not only with the quality of the Symphony’s musicians but also with the strong intellectual and cultural ambience of the Princeton community. This makes it possible for him to venture beyond the “Top 100” classical works, which is not always the case today with larger orchestras. He is also grateful to have other major arts organizations as neighbors and is looking forward to partnering with the Westminster Choir and the Art Museum, for example. His goal in programming is to choose works that develop the orchestra’s range, a difficult challenge in a season of only five concerts. Unlike other performing arts, classical music is committed to performing works authentically, in the style in which they were written. Great orchestras must master a broad variety of technique and performance practice.
The Q&A period, which was the final movement, was molto breve. Maestro Milanov said he hopes each of his concert programs will be so special that you will want to subscribe to them all. Ultimately, he hopes patrons will learn to “trust the chef.” Prompted by Dick Armstrong, he added The American Boychoir to his list of world-class artistic neighbors.
Respectfully submitted,
Donald B. Edwards
The topic for the morning was “Behind the Scenes at the Princeton Symphony,” which was presented as a kind of sonata a dué in three movements by Melanie Clarke, the Symphony’s Executive Director, and Rossen Milanov, its new Music Director. In the overture, Henry King, introduced the players, noting that he and Ms. Clarke are summer neighbors in Vermont. She joined the Symphony as a second violin in 1990 and became Director of Education in 1995 and Executive Director in 2006. She holds degrees from Wellesley and Harvard and has studied violin at Oberlin and Yale. She led the two-year search that resulted in the appointment of Rossen Milanov as Music Director in June of this year. Maestro Milanov is Artistic Director of The Philadelphia Orchestra at the Mann Center and the Music Director of the New Symphony Orchestra in his native Bulgaria. He has studied at Juilliard and Curtis and was named Bulgaria’s Musician of the Year in 2005.
Ms. Clarke began the first movement by playing an excerpt from Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings, one of three works for string orchestra that will make up the Symphony’s Classical Series Concert in March. The concert illustrates two characteristics of contemporary programming: economic challenges and partnerships with other organizations. The reduced size of the string orchestra helps with budget cuts, and another work on the program by John Tavener, which was inspired by Byzantine art, is linked to an exhibit at the Princeton Art Museum.
The Princeton Symphony is one of 350 professional orchestras in the United States, whose budgets range from $250,000 to $200 million. Princeton Symphony is a million dollar organization, but it shares the same issues as its larger counterparts. Its concert series is central to its mission but is “only the tip of the iceberg.” A holiday Pops concert, a Sunday Afternoon Chamber Series, and an extensive education program are major elements of their operations. Subscriptions for the Classical Series fill three-quarters of the seats at Richardson Auditorium, but individual donors are the primary source of support, followed by concert income, corporate and foundation grants, the NJ State Council on the Arts, and, in good years, endowment. Four staff and twenty trustees manage the organization. Fifty to sixty musicians play five to seven concerts annually on a per service basis. Most are graduates of Juilliard and Curtis.
In managing the Princeton Symphony, Ms. Clarke tries to keep focused on coherent programming, performance quality, and customer service while dealing with budget, planning, marketing, fund raising, contracting, communications, and volunteer coordination. They are justly proud that they have received a Citation of Excellence and been designated as a Major Arts Organization by the NJ State Council on the Arts.
In the second movement, Maestro Milanov noted this was his first public appearance in Princeton. He is much impressed not only with the quality of the Symphony’s musicians but also with the strong intellectual and cultural ambience of the Princeton community. This makes it possible for him to venture beyond the “Top 100” classical works, which is not always the case today with larger orchestras. He is also grateful to have other major arts organizations as neighbors and is looking forward to partnering with the Westminster Choir and the Art Museum, for example. His goal in programming is to choose works that develop the orchestra’s range, a difficult challenge in a season of only five concerts. Unlike other performing arts, classical music is committed to performing works authentically, in the style in which they were written. Great orchestras must master a broad variety of technique and performance practice.
The Q&A period, which was the final movement, was molto breve. Maestro Milanov said he hopes each of his concert programs will be so special that you will want to subscribe to them all. Ultimately, he hopes patrons will learn to “trust the chef.” Prompted by Dick Armstrong, he added The American Boychoir to his list of world-class artistic neighbors.
Respectfully submitted,
Donald B. Edwards